Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy
by Cokie316
Summary: My take on how Steve and Grover's "fish-off" might have transpired.


_**Author's Note: **_ Those scenes in last week's episode where Chin "coerced" Lou to continue fishing by indicating that Steve was the better pupil and then the discussions between Steve and Grover were just too funny. I thought maybe they needed a bit extra added to them, and this is what came out.

Thanks to Sym64 and Sockie who read and beta'd this. As always, their input makes my writing so much better. Also, thanks to Sym64 for the awesome avatar… I don't thank her enough for these great photos she manipulates into cover photos for my stories. She is quite multi-talented and I am in awe of her computer abilities!

Also, I haven't written a lot of stories under the name "Cokie" for a few months, but that doesn't mean I'm not writing. If you are so inclined, check out the stories written by "Whump-2-Go". Sam and I have teamed up and are writing together. As the name indicates, there is some whump, but there is also some fluff, fun and drama. Please give it a shot and let us know what you think!

_**Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy**_

_**By Cokie**_

_**Sunday evening**_

The fish had long been consumed and they sat, content to drink beer and wind down before Monday morning rolled around once again. At a lull in conversation, Kamekona asked, "So about this 'fish-off'. How you gonna work dat, bruddahs?"

"I've been thinking about that," Steve began, setting down his beer.

Grover shook his head. "Oh, here you go. Already wimping out," he sighed. "I took you for a better man, McGarrett."

"Hey! I'm not wimping out of anything! I was just thinking about the bets you guys are placing. How about we make this all worthwhile?"

"Go on," Danny said, motioning with his hands for Steve to continue.

"How about if we each choose a charity and all the money collected will go to the winner's choice?

"That's actually a very good idea," Chin agreed. "And by sponsoring a worthwhile charity, I bet we could get a lot of people interested."

"Not bad, Commander," Lou agreed. "Of course, there's no doubt who will be the winner."

"No," Steve agreed with a shake of his head. "No doubt at all. But to make it more interesting, how about a side bet? Just you and me?"

"I'm listening."

"Loser rides shotgun for a week."

Grover stared before a slow smile split his face. "You, my friend, are _**ON."**_

They shook on the deal, each of them taking comfort in the knowledge that _**he**_ wouldn't be the one in the passenger seat.

~~~H50~~~

_**Wednesday morning**_

"Morning, Duke," Chin said as the officer walked into headquarters. "What can we do for you?"

"I just wanted to see Steve if he was available." He looked toward the commander's office and nodded just as Steve looked up. McGarrett left his desk to join them at the computer table.

"Hey, Duke."

"Steve." Duke opened the notebook he was carrying. "Just wanted to let you know that most of our boys are behind you 100 percent."

"Behind me? What for?" Steve asked.

"The 'fish-off'. Most of HPD is backing you. As of this morning you had $785 to Grover's $490. People have really come together for this and they are having fun doing so."

"Seven hundred… you have _**got**_ to be kidding me!"

"No, but of course that was just from this morning's tally. We still have three days to go before you go fishing. I just wanted to say thank you for 'rallying the troops' so to speak," Duke explained.

Steve's mouth was still hanging open in amazement and he slowly shook his head. "I had no idea."

"No idea about what?" Danny asked as he walked into the room.

"This fish off," Chin told him. "Steve has raised $785 from HPD. Grover has $490." Chin grinned at the look on Danny's face. "I'm not sure if that includes the $40 you promised Grover."

"Yeah, Buddy, thanks for the love," Steve griped. "What a turncoat you are."

"Hey, I just wanted to make it interesting," Danny defended himself. "No need to get your panties all in a wad! But you've got to admit, Grover had one mighty fine fish last weekend."

"It was… decent," Steve admitted. "But the 'fish-off' as you call it will show who's the best fisherman. I'm not worried at all."

Danny shook his head and grinned. "Come Saturday you may not be that cocky."

"Hey, Danno!"

He turned around to see Grace walk into the bullpen. "Grace! What's wrong?" he asked, moving toward her, already assuming the worst.

"Nothing," she said, bouncing toward him for a hug. "I came to see Uncle Steve. Mom's waiting in the car, so I don't have much time."

Steve rounded the table. "What's up, Gracie? Everything OK?" He hugged the girl to him and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"Yep, I just wanted to give you this." She handed him an envelope with change and dollar bills in it. "I collected money at my school for the fish-off," she turned to glare at Danny, "and everyone wanted to be on your team. I got $78!"

Steve was speechless. "Wow." He looked at the bills in disbelief. "Grace, I don't know what to say."

"You say 'thank you' to my Princess is what you say," Danny prodded.

"Yeah, thank you, Grace." He handed the envelope to Duke. "Officer Lukela is one of our people keeping the money so I'll give it to him, but I can't thank you enough. How did you even hear about this?"

"Well," she began, dragging out the word. "Danno told me about Captain Grover's big fish and how he bet he was a better fisherman than you and I knew that was a lie, then Danno said you were going to have a contest and he bet on the other guy and not you, and I knew that was wrong, so I decided to raise money for you! Lots of kids even gave me their lunch money."

Steve looked at Danny and smirked. Danny retorted with an eye roll.

Steve reached for Grace and gave her another hug. "Gracie, I promise, _**you**_ are on the best team." He leaned down and whispered, "And we're gonna kick Danno and Grover's butts over this, OK?"

"Deal! See you later. Bye, Danno." With a quick hug for her dad, she was out the door.

Danny turned back to see Steve with his arms crossed, grinning from ear to ear. Danny held his hands over his ears and turned away. "Don't say it, because I'm not listening. La la la la la," was heard all the way back to his office before he shut the door.

~~~H50~~~

_**Saturday morning, 0800**_

Saturday morning dawned bright and beautiful for a normal Hawaiian spring day. Chin had sent out an email on Friday telling everyone who wanted to send the fishermen off to meet at the Koko Marina where his uncle's boat was still docked. Details still needed to be worked out over the "rules" of the game so Steve wanted to get there early. With his gear stowed in the truck, he changed clothes and left for the marina after his morning run.

When he pulled into a parking space, Steve was surprised to see the crowd gathered at the end of the dock. He recognized Kono and Chin, Kamekona and Flippa, but also saw a couple of Grover's SWAT guys and assorted HPD officers milling around. He looked around and didn't see Grover, but soon the man pulled up in his pick up.

"Hey, Steve," Chin called when Steve and his gear arrived. "Danny just called and he's taking Grace to a cheer competition but he should be back this afternoon. Are you ready for this?"

"Yeah, as soon as Grover gets his act together," he said with a grin. Steve mingled with the group, receiving well wishes from most of them before finally reaching the boat, followed by Grover.

"Now what's this?" Grover asked, coming up behind Steve.

Steve turned around and smirked. "This, my friend, is a fishing boat. It's what you fish from. But you might not know that, seeing as how you're a newbie and such."

"No, no, no," Grover argued. "The other day, I was in that little dinghy of a boat out in the bay. We can't go fishing in this thing."

"You were learning to spearfish in the cove, Captain," Chin argued. "The best fish are out in the ocean."

"Now that just wasn't part of the deal," Grover continued to argue. "I planned to go out in the bay and catch my fish. I'm not a good enough snorkeler to stay out in the ocean."

"So, now who's the wimp?" Steve asked, smirking at his friend.

"Hey! Who you callin' a wimp?"

"I don't know… maybe the man who won't get in the boat! What, you get seasick or something?"

"No," Grover informed him. "I do not get seasick. I'm just not comfortable diving into the ocean. Besides, if we're fishing from the same boat, how do I know you won't poach a fish that I'm aiming at?"

"There's plenty of fish for both of us, Lou," Steve said.

"OK, how about this," Chin said, trying to diffuse an argument before it got out of hand. "Lou, why don't you go to the cove and fish there and Steve can go out in the boat here? Is that doable?"

"Fine with me," Steve agreed. "But is there a set time limit? How do we know when to come in?"

Chin turned to some of the others. "How about it guys? Is three hours sufficient time to claim bragging rights?"

"Dat's plenty of time," Kamekona said, receiving a chorus of 'yeah' and head nods from the group.

"Lou, someone has to go with you. You can't fish alone out there," Chin told the SWAT captain.

"Hey, I could spot him," Flippa suggested. "I wouldn't mind some sun time."

"Is that all right with everyone?" Chin asked again, receiving more nods of agreement.

"Before you boys get started," Duke said, "I've got the latest tally of numbers. Captain Grover, your team has collected $783 while Commander McGarrett, your team has raised $1,035."

The group surrounding them began clapping, cheering, hissing and booing the two fishermen, who were taking it all in stride.

Steve grinned and held out his hand. "Sorry, Lou. I hope I don't show you up too badly."

"Sorry, my ass. I'll show you sorry when I get back here."

"All right," Chin got everyone's attention again. Glancing at his watch, he said, "It's 8:30. By the time Lou drives around to the cove and rents the rafts, it will be nine. We can have the boat out by nine, you both fish until noon, then we meet back here by 12:30 to declare the winner."

"Sounds fair," Steve nodded.

"I'm ready," Grover agreed. "McGarrett, be prepared to be wowed."

Steve shrugged. "Go for it, Lou. Hope you're not too disappointed tonight when we're eating all the fish that *I* caught. But don't worry, I'll share."

~~~H50~~~

_**Saturday, 1000**_

An hour and a half later, Lou Grover was one frustrated man. He came up for air again to find Flippa asleep in his dinghy. He wondered what would happen if he speared that boat… just to watch the young man move.

Lou didn't have a single fish to his name. Not one. He had attempted six shots, and all were off the mark. He glanced at his watch and was sweating bullets… he had less than two hours to produce a sizeable catch… because he was _**not**_… repeat _**NOT**_ going to lose to McGarrett.

Lou Grover would not willingly ride shotgun in another man's truck.

Ever.

He looked around and knew this was the exact same spot he and Chin had fished in last week. This is where he found "his" fish. The big one. And a few other smaller ones after that one. Lou just couldn't understand why they weren't swimming today.

He pulled his facemask over his eyes and adjusted his snorkel and dived once again.

Never ever.

~~~H50~~~

_**Saturday, 1100**_

Out in the ocean, Steve was lounging in the boat with Chin, taking a break and drinking a beer.

"Wonder how Lou's doing?" Chin asked with a grin.

"Don't care," Steve said, an answering smile on his face. "I've got some good sized fish there and before I finish, I'm sure I'll have more. He's going to have to work hard to beat me."

"Well, he did pull in a nice one last week," Chin reminded him.

"Beginner's luck," Steve adamantly replied, setting down his beer. He grabbed his snorkel and sat on the side of the boat, ready to roll off into the water. "I guarantee he won't find another fish like that one!"

~~~H50~~~

_**Saturday 1115**_

Grover came up once again to find Flippa still fast asleep, bobbing in the water several feet away. Lou was wet, cranky and out of time. To add insult to injury, he hadn't secured the spear to his wrist and he had dropped the danged gun into the water and had to dive to get it. When he dove down, he saw fish… big fish… but by the time he had the spear firmly attached again, they were long gone.

He climbed back into his small vessel and glanced at his watch once again. Forty-five minutes left. Lou was as depressed as his fish from last week… if you listened to McGarrett.

Which he didn't. Lou Grover vowed once again that he was not losing a bet with the Five-0 commander. He reached for his waterproof pack and pulled out his cellphone. With another glance to the slumbering Flippa a few feet away, he began to text.

~~~H50~~~

_**Saturday, 1235**_

Steve and Chin docked their boat and waved to Danny who had just pulled into the parking lot. Others followed and gathered around to get a first look at Steve's catch.

"Hang on, guys," Steve told them. He threw a tarp down on the dock and took the foam ice chest that Chin handed off to him and began laying the fish out. "Look at these guys. Danny, your pal Lou's gonna have a hard time beating this catch."

"Come on, Steve, you've got to at least give him a chance to prove himself," Danny said. "He may have hit a jackpot."

"Not in that cove, he didn't," Steve vowed. He glanced up… "And here he is now," he said with a grin as Grover pulled up in his truck, Flippa pulling in behind him. Kamekona and Duke arrived at the same time, along with a few of the others who had been there that morning.

Lou and Flippa came down the dock, each holding a side of the ice chest Lou had stored in his truck. "McGarrett, make your words sweet because you are going to eat them." He proceeded to lay out five fish on the tarp.

Everyone looked on in awe. Lou only had five fish, but they were all large… much larger than Steve's catch.

Kamekona looked at Steve in shock. "Bruddah—"

Steve waved his hand to shush him and leaned in close to look at Lou's catch. Each fish had a neat spear hole right through its middle. Lou's aim was good. Much too good for a rookie. He stood back up and placed his hands on his hips and looked at the crowd.

"Cat got your tongue, Commander?" Grover asked.

Steve pursed his lips and shook his head in awe. "That's quite a catch," Steve admitted. "But you don't know a lot about fishing, do you, Lou?"

"Apparently I know enough," Grover retorted with a laugh. "Chin is a good teacher."

Steve nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, he's the best. I learned a lot from him." Steve looked at Chin who had a gleam in his eye.

"And so did I," Lou continued. "Face it, McGarrett, I won. I have before me five bea-u-tiful fish…" he pointed first to his catch laid out on the tarp, then swept his hand towards Steve's fish. "All, I might add, which are bigger than those little minnows you have there. Now granted, you speared more of them, but what, the biggest one is maybe a three-pounder? These beauties easily range from three to eight pounds apiece."

Danny leaned over and picked up one of the fish. "Take a look at this fella. I bet he was a tough one."

"Oh, he was," Grover agreed with a nod of his head. "He was."

"Yeah," Steve agreed with a nod of his own. "I'm betting you're right." He moved to stand in front of Grover. "Especially for the fisherman who caught him in the lake on Kauai. You see, Lou… these fish are Hawaiian bass… and they can only be found in fresh water… _**not**_ the Pacific. So, you want to tell me how you really got these 'beauties'?"

The smile on Grover's face froze, then disappeared. "What are you talking about?"

"These fish came from a lake… most likely on Kauai; not the ocean. That's what I'm talking about."

Grover whipped around to glare at Danny. "Detective, did you do this on purpose?"

"Me?" Danny squeaked. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," he shook his head and set the fish back down, waving his arms. "Hold on now, you're not gonna blame this on me!" he said, pointing his thumb first at himself and then at Grover. "You texted that you needed some prime fish from the market… I got you the fish." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a receipt and slapped it against Grover's chest. "And you owe me $78.00 for your 'catch of the day'."

"So…" Steve began. "It was a conspiracy between the two of you, right? It isn't enough that my partner is working with the enemy, but now you both _**cheat**_? I don't believe it." He shook his head, his hands on his hips. "I'm thinking I won fair and square, how about you, Chin?"

Chin shrugged and looked at the two culprits standing before him. He sighed in disappointment. "I'm thinking you won by default, Steve. I just have no words for these two."

He then glanced at Duke and Kamekona. "You two have handled all the money for us. What do you think?"

The officer folded his arms and shook his head, looking from Danny to Lou. He then looked at Kamekona who still had a disappointed look on his face. The two of them turned away from the group for a hurried conference then presented a unified front.

Duke gave their verdict. "The way we see it, this little bet about who is the best fisherman has skyrocketed into something else. I applaud your efforts to give all the wagered money to charity. That was a very noble thing and has brought camaraderie between some community members, HPD, SWAT and Five-0. But now," he shook his head in disappointment and Kamekona finished for him.

"We think da losers need to pay up double on their wagers to McGarrett's charity, so the Wounded Warriors got a substantial sum of kala today."

"Good call guys, I agree," Steve said. "Pay up and we'll call it even."

"Hey, now, I've already put down forty on Lou… plus the $78.00… I'm in this too deep already," Danny argued.

Steve shrugged. "Then maybe you have learned your lesson. You owe Duke another $40.00. Lou, how much did you bet on yourself?"

"Now wait a minute. I put that money in so that it would go to the Fallen Officer Widows and Orphan Fund. I'm not—"

Duke checked the notebook he held. "Captain, I believe you now owe an additional $100 to the Wounded Warriors."

Steve slapped the larger man on the arm. "It's a great charity, Lou. Better luck next time," he said with a satisfied smirk.

"In addition," Duke began again. "I believe you two should personally apologize to each of the people who backed you in this fish-off. They didn't donate their hard-earned money to be associated with cheating. I would hate for this to cause any backlash for the police department."

"But—"

"Hey!—"

The two culprits became silent, not really having an argument for their case. They looked at each other and sighed, knowing they were beat.

"When you guys collect all the money, let me know and I'll pick it up and make the donation," Steve told them. "If you want to come with, just let me know. It is a great cause. Now," he grinned, "about that other bet…"

"No way." Grover planted his feet firmly, folded his arms over his massive chest and shook his head. "I refuse."

"It was part of the bet," Steve reminded him. "You can't refuse. What would your men think?"

"I…" He thought for a moment and sighed, grumbling "sonofabitch" beneath his breath. "Not for a week," he told Steve, watching as Steve and Chin stowed the eleven fish into their cooler. "Not gonna do it."

"Suit yourself," Steve calmly said. "I just wouldn't want to deal with the fallout," he added. "One week as shot-gun and Danny's penance is one week in the back seat."

"Hey now, leave me outta this," Danny argued.

"No, Brah, you put yourself right in the middle of it," Chin reminded him.

"And," Steve said. "A bet is a bet." He picked up his cooler and turned to leave. "See you guys bright and early on Monday. But everybody is invited tonight for a 'cook-off'. Bring those bass with you. Lou do you even know how to cook those things?"

~~~H50~~~


End file.
